JAKARTA, Indonesia?Riots erupted Sunday after an independence movement leader was kidnapped and killed in Irian Jaya, one of several Indonesian provinces wracked by violence amid a traumatic transition to democracy after decades of dictatorship.

Villagers found the body of Theys Eluay, 64, in his wrecked car in a ravine 18 miles east of the provincial capital, Jayapura.

Police said he appeared to have been strangled and that his assailants had tried to make the killing look accidental by pushing the car off a remote stretch of road. There were no clear suspects, and his driver was missing, they said.

Eluay’s widow, Yaneke, blamed the Indonesian military, which is often accused of human rights atrocities. Police said Eluay was killed as he returned home after dining with local Indonesian army commanders Saturday night. Senior military officers refused to comment.